carrier

T-Mobile is back to calling out the other carriers today, and this time around, it's focusing on pulling in a major source of revenue for Verizon and AT&T: baby boomers. T-Mobile has introduced a new version of its ONE unlimited plan that is exclusively available to customers who are 55 and older. If you think I'm joking about that, then you should know that T-Mobile is actually going to check your ID when you try to sign up for this plan.

These days, you hear a lot of jokes on the internet about the citizens of the world (or at least the US) heading down the "darkest timeline." It's easy to believe it, too, with important things like healthcare and net neutrality potentially at risk through new legislation. Now, Citibank analyst Jason Bazinet has penned an opinion that Comcast should purchase Verizon, and if we aren't in the darkest timeline right now, we certainly will be if such a deal ever becomes a reality.

Back when the big four carriers first announced their new unlimited plans, T-Mobile initially put itself in a good position to compete on price with the likes of Verizon and AT&T. Today, however, T-Mobile's unlimited plan is looking quite similar to what Verizon offers, not only from a features standpoint, but also from a pricing one. That's thanks to a small price hike T-Mobile has made to its One Plus add-on.

While mobile carriers in the US still pretty much have a vice grip on the mobile market, the rest of the world seems to be changing. The European Union's mandate to abolish roaming charges within its member countries has just taken effect and now Canada is going to prevent carriers from locking users into their services. Starting 1st Decembers, users need no longer pay a fee to get the phones unlocked. In fact, all new phones from that day forward should already be unlocked by default.

The Essential Phone may have made a huge misstep, with Andy Rubin showing that, while he knows how to make a slick phone, he may be behind the curve on carrier sentiment. Launched to no small amount of fanfare in late May, the Android smartphone puts refined design, cutting-edge technology, and modular extensibility at the fore. However, the bad news chaser is the network it'll be an in-store carrier exclusive with.

T-Mobile's DIGITS, which allows subscribers to mix & match with multiple numbers across multiple devices, is rolling it to all its customers from May 31. With it, users will be able to have two lines - one for personal, one for business - call the same smartphone, for instance, without having to pay for two full service plans. DIGITS launched in beta back in December 2016, but as of the end of this month all T-Mobile subscribers will find it activated on their plans.

It's been a few years now since US mobile carriers Sprint and T-Mobile held negotiations over a merger between the two companies, only to eventually be shut down by government regulators. But now that some time has passed, along with a freeze on such discussions due to the recent spectrum auction, Sprint's parent SoftBank and T-Mobile's parent Deutsche Telekom AG are looking to revive their merger talks.

Each carrier has its share of drawbacks, but with Sprint, one of those drawbacks can certainly be network coverage. While Sprint usually offers the least expensive service, coverage can often leave something to be desired. If you find yourself in this position frequently, you may want to have a look at Sprint's new Magic Box network extender.

iPad owners on AT&T's related unlimited data plan -- the ones who are grandfathered in, that is -- are on the receiving end of some disappointing emails. The carrier has notified these customers about a change to the plan that will result in throttling once 22GB are used. The throttling will go into effect starting on May 24, and it will only take place during 'periods of network congestion,' according to AT&T.

In a world where the big four carriers in the United States are promoting their new unlimited data plans, FreedomPop is going in the opposite direction. FreedomPop has introduced a new prepaid family plan that goes light on the data in the name of making monthly fees as small as possible. Assuming you can handle having next to no data each month, this might be the plan for you.

The big players in the wireless market all unveiled new or refined unlimited plans in recent weeks, and now Cricket Wireless, a smaller prepaid carrier, has announced its own unlimited plan change. The carrier is now offering its unlimited plan at a cheaper $60/month rate, helping bring it into the range of unlimited plans offered by the likes of bigger carriers. Cricket is also offering those who convert one of four free Android phones.

Nobody likes finding they've got no signal on their phone, especially if it's an emergency, so AT&T is pushing ahead with testing drones as temporary LTE towers. The carrier successfully completed its first trial flights last week, dispatching a number of drones on short flights in a network dead-spot in the US. Each was equipped with the necessary hardware to create its own little bubble of coverage.